Story Highlights

KUSA – Polar explorer, and Boulder, Colo. resident, Eric Larsen is trying to break a record. Larsen is heading to the North Pole in an attempt to cross the Arctic Ocean from Northern Ellesmere Island to the geographic North Pole with a distance of roughly 500 miles.

That in itself is not a record, but Larsen and his partner Ryan Waters, plan on doing it in less than 49-days unsupported. Unsupported means they plan on traversing over the icy waters carrying all the gear needed to survive the frigid temperatures using only human means. No vehicles, no animals and no help from the environment.

"The Arctic Ocean is a place being affected by climate change more than most on the planet," Larsen said. "There's no land there. The ice is just floating on water; polar bears just live on the ice most of the year."

"I want to get people excited about cold and help them understand how important a role that Arctic Ocean ice plays in a healthy environment."